Ice Age: Trouble in Paradise
by Hydra42
Summary: Sequel to Ice Age: The Odd One Out. Adrian and Diego, newly married, are expecting a baby. But are they ready for parenthood?
1. A Typical Day

A/N (Special Edition):

Hello, all my anonymous happy people! The sequel is finally here, and I'll tell you more about my inspirations for it and other stories I'm planning on (but will not tell you about yet, sorry!) through the different A/N notices throughout the story chapters. Won't that be fun?

But first, a notice; In case you clicked on this without reading through my first story, Ice Age: The Odd One Out, you can do two things...

a) You can read through the whole first story **first** before reading this, which I **strongly** recommend.

b) You can read this anyway, which in my opinion would be stupid. Why? Because you're not going to know who Adrian, The Beavers, Phineas, Hazel, Lydia or all my other OC's are! And plus the whole thing takes place in the new home of all these characters, the Golden Glade (cheesy name, but it's catchy), which was also mentioned in The Odd One Out. So, if you choose B, you'll miss out on a lot of stuff you need to know. Plus, the first story is as good as this will be...I hope.

And now on with the beginning (dun-dun-dun-DAH! *fanfare plays*) of the long-awaited (I hope) and as-good-as-the-first-and-better sequel;

ICE AGE: TROUBLE IN PARADISE

Enjoy the show, and remember to tip your waitresses! (just a joke, people) But you know what's better than tips? **Reviews!**

P.S: To all those who read the sneak preview for this on Chapter 20 of The Odd One Out, I had said that the extracts were from this chapter. But this chapter was so long already, I decided to shorten it. Instead, it will be in Chapter 2. My bad, sorry everyone!

* * *

The sun was beginning to peak over the hills, shedding an amber light over the Golden Glade. Autumn leaves fell swiftly in the morning's welcoming glow, the previous rain shower from last night had dampened every nook and cranny it could. And the year-long evergreen trees stood proudly, viewing the marvalous spectacle as through it were their own creation.

In the middle of the woods along the East River, there was a small clearing in which stood a permanent campground. Three dens stood around the center. A short tree with a study branch and a thick hollow in the middle rested peacefully alongside them. And in the middle itself, remnants of a fire that had burned through the night, same as always.

In a den farther off, with its back to the fire, Diego opened his eyes lazily and stretched, not even bothered that the morning dew on the grass had tripled, getting his toes all wet. But he did notice something was different. Something was missing. His groggy mind took a while to comprehend this, and only a few seconds afterwards had he figured it out.

His mate was gone.

As quickly as he could manage at sunrise, he walked over to the camp. Manny, Ellie, Sid, Crash, Eddie, and even little Peaches were wide awake, eating their breakfast.

"Mornin', Unco Dey-go." Peaches greeted him, trying to chew her blueberries.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, sweetie." Ellie chided her gently, before commenting "I thought cats were early risers."

"Where's Adrian?" Diego asked.

"Oh, she just went for a walk a couple of hours or so ago. Brought us back these blueberries." Manny shrugged.

"Well, why?"

"Beats me, go ask her. She's probably near the lake by now."

* * *

Adrian walked through the woods, leaves crunching under her paws. Usually at this time of morning, the Glade was pretty much awake. But she had a knack for finding the road less travelled wherever she was. She was just that kind of person. And after only a couple months of living here, she knew all the Glade's secrets up and down, including the quiet roads.

Or not so quiet. The leaves crunched again, but the sound was too far away to be made by her own feet. She stopped, looking backwards over her shoulder, her dark brown eyes studying the terrain.

"Hey."

She jumped instictively, and looked back in front of her to find a smiling Diego. "Don't do that!" she reprimanded.

"Sorry. I didn't scare you, did I?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes, and brushed the leaves out of her light golden fur, but she had a half-smile on her face now.

"Ha! As if **you** could ever scare **me**. I was just startled, that's all." she denied. He raised an eyebrow, and breaking under pressure, she laughed.

"Why'd you come out here?"

She swiped a falling leaf away from her. "I just needed to walk."

"In the middle of the night?" he pointed out.

"I don't know. Just something to do. I'm restless these days, I just...feel like I want something. But I can't name it." She paused, lost in thought.

"Hey, it'll pass." Diego reasurred. "We've got everything we want, this place, our families, each other..."

"Right." she agreed, shaking her head back to reality. "So, as long as you're here, do you want a race?" she challenged.

"How far this time?"

"To the edge of the lake. The side with the huge mud pit."

"You're on." he accepted, smiling.

"And please, no cheating." she added.

"What do you take me for?" he questioned, pretending to be insulted. She smiled coyly at him and before he was even ready, started to run.

"Hey!" he yelled, before running after her.

* * *

They carried on for about ten minutes, Adrian a minute or so in the lead and Diego trying to catch up with her. Already in view of the mud pits, Adrian saw a log witha side submerged in the mud. With a sneaky smile, she but one side of the log and dragged it out, spreading the slippery mud around, and placing the log sideways in the middle of the trail. Sure, she's already won, but it wouldn't hurt to have a little fun. She hid behind a bush and waited.

She heard a splash, and came out from behind the bush to view the inevitable. Diego had jumped over the log, and not seeing the mud behind it, slid into the pit. He was staring at her, drenched in mud.

"Well, looks like I win again." she said nonchalantly, checking her claws. He spat a glob of mud out of his mouth and muttered "Hypocrite."

Which she responded to by sticking out her tongue childishly and laughing. "All right, fair is fair. Let me help you out."

"Yeah, how about?" he grumbled, as he took her outreached paw and dragged himself out. "This isn't going to help me when I go hunting later."

The Glade was surrounded by a huge slanting wall, which mostly kept it from the outside world. The exception to that was a tunnel-like exit to the south, leading to the outskirts of town. No one lived there except Adrian's mother, Lydia. And there was also a break in the wall to the farther east, which Diego usually went out of to hunt. Adrian had made an agreement with him that he wasn't going to eat any of their neighbors.

"Well, just wash up, the lake's right there." She pointed back behind her, then got another idea. She grabbed his paw and began running towards the lake.

"Adrian..." he started to say.

"Cannonball!" she shouted over him, jumping into the pristine water and pulling Diego in as well. He emerged, coughing and shivering. "Don't you think you've beat me up enough?" he teased. He knew Adrian was only messing around; besides mates they were the best of friends.

"Hey, nothin' like a dip in cold water to clean you off, huh?" she replied, bobbing up out of the water. He smiled through his shivering, a trick up his sleeve.

"Nothing like a good splash of said water, either."

"Yep, nothi-huh?" she asked, catching the sentence just as he carried out his word.

"Stop it!" she laughed, splashing him back.

_What a way to begin the day _she thought. But then again, every day with Diego was an adventure in itself.


	2. Adrian Wants Something More

A/N: Hello again, everyone. Thanks very much for the reviews you sent so far, even three is more than I expected. I hope to get more soon!

* * *

A small rabbit was eating a carrot right by a clump of berry bushes. Suddenly, the tree branches nearby began to rustle. The naturally timid bunny looked behind him and started to shiver. Something was going to make breakfast out of him! But in this sort of clump, there was nowhere to run. As the bushes in front of him parted, he dropped the carrot and flinched. When nothing happened, he looked up. And laughed.

Well, no one could blame him. It was not often that you saw a saber-tooth tiger with messy fur that had a branch with a small nest carrying around forty-some berries tucked behind one ear, and berry juice smeared over her mouth. Adrian narrowed her eyes at him.

"What, you never saw a saber looking for food before? Scram, buster, before you ruin my good mood." She swiped at him, and the rabbit, still laughing, hopped past her into the woods.

"Little furballs, never liked them." she grumbled to herself, looking through the bushes. "Hmm, blueberries?...no I've got seven of those...cranberries?...not this early in the morning." she mumbled to herself. "Ah! Oh, ho, ho...jackpot! The strawberry motherlode, come to momma-huh?" She reached out her claws to grab as many strawberries as she could, but as she lifted her arm, the branch from her ear toppled to the ground, scattering the nest and sending the other berries rolling away into the woods.

"Wait, no! Come back, darn you!" she yelled, trying to grab what she could. And missed.

Picking up the branch, and placing the nest angrily in it, she muttered "Well, back to square one." She stuck her head back out of the bushes, where she saw Hazel's face an inch away from hers.

"Aah!" she yelled, jumping back. The nest fell off her head again, and the branch snapped. "Oh, it's you." she noticed. "Don't do that, okay?"

"Sorry, but this is important." Hazel begged. "Please, you've gotta come see!"

"Well, what **is **it?"

"You know that pregnant bird that lives two trees away from the dam?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah. Hilary the emu. But-"

"She just gave birth yesterday night."

Adrian's eyes widened. "In the middle of that rainstorm? Jeez, what a time to pick. Is the baby okay?"

"Yeah, it's just starting to walk. Let's go watch it!" Hazel grabbed Adrian's paw and started to pull her off.

"I-I don't know. Wouldn't the parents be scared of me being near their kid?"

"Oh, they know you're a vegetarian. Everyone does. Now, come on." Hazel insisted, even though they were on the trail already. A few minutes later, they were slowly walking towards a crowd gathered in front of a cozy nest.

"Hey, make way, people." Hazel ordered, ushering Adrian through the crowd.

"Hazel, stop, you don't need-" Adrian objected, but stopped mid-sentence as she heard a small cawing noise. She turned to look at the nest. Hilary was sitting comfortably inside, her black feathers hardly ruffling. Her orange eyes smiled at everyone. Outside, trying to hide behind the nest, was a little chick with stripy yellow-and-black down.

"It's okay, Abigail." she said to the baby. "She won't hurt you. Come out."

The baby peered nervously at her mother, before swinging her legs forward and waddling up to the crowd.

"Aww." Hazel cooed. "Isn't she precious? Already trying to walk."

Adrian didn't really respond, lost in thought. Hazel had told her; ever since Hilary and her husband Donny's old nest back in the eastern regions got flooded, and Hilary's younger sister had died, she had been one of the saddest animals anywhere, even when had moved to the Glade. Yet now, watching baby Abigail try to stay balanced while everyone was watching, she looked like the happiest of people.

Having a baby really changes people, I guess she concluded, as little Abigail started waddling towards her. Almost when she was ready to walk back, she sneezed and fell down at Adrian's feet. With a laugh, she noticed the baby was hardly bigger than her paw.

"Good job." she told her. "Get up and go back to momma, okay? I can't be staying long." She used a finger to lift Abigail back on her feet and with a gurgle, she started walking again. Smiling, Adrian turned to leave.

"Hey, where you going?" Hazel questioned, following her.

"Nowhere." Adrian answered calmly. "I just think I found an answer to my problem."

"What problem? Hey, wait!" Hazel shouted, as Adrian ran off.

* * *

By midnight, the herd had all fallen asleep, except Adrian and Diego. Diego was eating his dinner, which he preferred to do away from the rest of the herd. But he couldn't help wondering why Adrian, who didn't like to see him eating either, didn't seem fazed. She wasn't even looking at him.

"Hon, you okay?" he asked. "You haven't talked all night."

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine, don't worry." she dismissed. "Just been wondering about somethin'."

"What?"

Adrian inwardly flinched. She'd thought the idea so carefully, and loved it. But she didn't know if Diego would really like it so soon.

"It's nothing important." she mumbled.

Looking up at the starry sky, she saw the Great Saber constellation. The stars that made up its eyes were twinkling. She looked away, determined. If she didn't try, she'd never know.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" she stated, making up her mind at last.

"You just did." he joked, swallowing the last of his dinner.

"I'm serious, Diego. It's important." she cut off. Once she cut the casuality, it was easy for her to get her point across.

"All right, sure." He stopped scratching his claws against the den wall and looked at her. "What's the matter?"

"Well," she hesitated, not knowing exactly how to phrase it. "We've been married a while, right?"

"Uh, yeah."

"And you love me, right?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course." He smiled, and kissed her forehead. "So, go on, what is it?" he queried, stretching his arms and yawning.

"Well, I know this isn't the best time to ask, but...I really would like a cub or two sometime in the future. As in the near future." she finished.

"What?" He tried to stand up in shock, but his head bumped against the roof. "Ow! What do you mean, 'the near future'?"

"I'm not trying to pressure you or anything, I'm just saying. You're not mad, are you?" she hissed, looking around and hoping the rest of the herd hadn't woken up.

He sighed, still rubbing his head. "No. But that's a big thing to ask, we've only been together three months."

"Ellie got pregnant with Peaches the same month she married Manny." she debated. This was what she had feared would happen.

He laughed. "Yeah, but honey, news flash, we're not mammoths" She wasn't taking this as lightly as he was.

"Don't you want a family?" she questioned, her voice dropping with sadness. She'd thought he'd love the idea of having kids.

"We've got the herd. That's all we need for right now."

"But, Diego, just think about it...you and me, walking along the path to the river, with a little fuzzy tyke named Diego Jr. riding on your back and pulling at your ears. Or an Adrian Jr., either way. Why wouldn't anyone want children?" she mused.

"It's not like I don't want them, it's just-not right now." He yawned again, and held her paw. "Right now, you're all the family I need. Now go to sleep, please."

He closed his eyes, and she snuggled up against him, feeling lost. _Why wouldn't anyone want to have kids? _she repeated in her mind._ I know I do._

* * *

The next morning was nothing nice to wake up to. Adrian felt nauseous, groggy, and her muscles were stiff.

"Ugh." she moaned, managing to push herself upward. "That's the last time I sleep on my side."

It took her a while to notice the camp was deserted. "Where'd they go?" she wondered, then shrugged. Which, she reminded her tired mind painfully, was a bad move. "Oh, well, at least they let me sleep in." she yawned.

She stared at the sun, which seemed unusually bright today. "I wonder how long I was out?" she asked herself, then started to walk forward carefully.

"Ouch!"

She put a paw to her stomach, which had strangely had a brief pain spasm. She looked around, but already knew that it was internal. _Maybe...something I ate?_ she suggested. Speaking of eating, there were a few blueberries left from dinner last night. Maybe a morning snack would help.

But another weird thing happened; after she'd popped a few in her mouth, they started to taste like tree sap. Adrian remembered that she hadn't tasted tree sap since she was a young cub, and the beavers had been eating it, so she tried some, too. She also remembered spitting it out, and resolving never to have any ever again.

But yet, for some reason, she wanted some. The taste didn't seem too bad now. Her stomach growled, then had another spasm.

"Ow! What the-something's wrong." she figured out, shaking her head. "Maybe I'm sick or something. I gotta find Hazel, she knows about stuff like this." She tried to run, but pain wracked her body again. So with an impatient growl, she started walking.

* * *

A/N: I hope more people read this!


	3. An Unexpected Surprise, Or Not

A/N: Hello, all!

I had written and re-written this chapter about four times before I felt it was good enough to publish, so sorry for the delay. I do hope you haven't given up on me yet!

* * *

Branches snapped and logs rolled as Adrian ran through the forest, breaking the crisp morning monotony. Yes, **ran**, through the forest. But not too fast, she reminded herself. It was important that she get there, but she needed to be more careful now...

_"Adrian?" she heard Ellie call out. The stiffness in her muscles was dying down, and she could walk freely. "How did you sleep?" Ellie asked?_

_"Is that tree sap?" she blurted out. She was in a hurry to get to Hazel, but it wouldn't hurt to eat a bit first._

_"Um...yeah, but-"_

_Without another word, she dashed over to the leaking tree and drank like one starved. Ellie watched her in confusion. __"Whoa, whoa, hang on!" Ellie's trunk tightened around her middle, and she felt herself being dragged away from the tree. She clutched her midriff in pain. _

_"What's going-hey, are you okay?" Ellie asked concernedly, letting go. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"_

_"It wasn't you." Adrian explained. "I woke up this morning and my stomach started hurting really badly. I don't know why, though, so I thought I'd go see Hazel, in case it was something I ate." _

_Ellie stared, still puzzled. "But what...the tree-"_

_"I don't know myself." she answered. "I ate a few blueberries, but right after that I started wanting some tree sap. Which is odd, since I don't even like it."_

_"Oh." she said simply. "Well, maybe I can help. Does your stomach hurt all the time, or just when you move?"_

_"Neither."_

_"**Huh?**"_

_"It's just hurting at random. Like some invisible jackrabbit is kicking me in the gut." Adrian rolled her eyes, embarressed at her own stupid metaphor._

_"Kicking." Ellie repeated. "And cravings for tree sap, even though you don't like it."_

_"Yeah." she confirmed. "So, you know what it is?"_

_"Well...it depends." Ellie hesitated._

_"On what?"_

_"Did...you know...anything...**happen**? Recently? Maybe yesterday?"_

* * *

"Diego!" she yelled. Or at least, she tried to yell. It came out as more of a breathy gasp. She was afraid to stop in her tracks, worried the pain might catch up with her aching muscles. But she needed him to know.

"Morning, sleeping beauty." he greeted sweetly, looking over his shoulder. Only when he saw his wife staggering and panting did her change his mood. "Did you...uh, sleep well?" he asked.

"Listen," she wheezed. "There's-I've got some news."

"Bad news?"

"Oh, no! It's...very good news. The best news in a long time." she said, smiling.

"Well, then, why do you look so pale?"

"Never mind that, we just haven't eaten yet, that's all." she responded hesitantly, a million questions whirring in her own mind.

"I've eaten enough."

"Not you! It's just there's something I've got to tell you, but I don't know how! You were so worried about it, and I was too, but in a good way, you know?" she rambled, losing her cool. "And I'm worried on how you'll take it, 'cause-"

"Honey, calm down!" he yelled over her, then sighed to calm himself down. "Whatever it is you've got to say, I'll listen. But I can't if you're all frantic and stuff, okay?"

"Okay, sorry." she breathed, than cleared her throat and started on what might be the happiest and most stressful announcement ever. She knew from this day forward, she would be doing everything for one extra person, who, if she did everything right, would be, besides Diego, the most important and beloved person of her entire life.

"I'm p-pr...I'm gonna...you're gonna...we're gonna..." she stuttered. Which to start with? _Oh, this would be less of a hassle if I wasn't so dramatic!_ she thought, agitated with her own jitters. She wished now, with a guilty weakness, that she shouldn't have to tell it at all-

"SIX!"

Boomed a loud and excited voice from behind her, and they both jumped. Ellie, Crash and Eddie were standing behind them, Ellie nearly jumping up and down for joy, and Crash and Eddie wearing delighted smirks.

"The baby'll be here in six months!" Ellie yelled. "In the middle of Spring! That's how long it takes for tigers to normally have babies...I think. Hilary told me as we were coming up here. But it's still wonderful!"

Crash and Eddie started leading a song, but they were fighting not to laugh.

"For she's a jolly good mother, for she's a jolly good mother. And he's a jolly good faaatherrr-" they belted out the last note teasingly. "And nobody can deny!"

Adrian looked at the three of them, stunned. Ellie quickly got the hint. "Oh. You...haven't told him yet, have you?"

Adrian shook her head lightly, forgiving of Ellie. Then she cocked her head over to the boys, and glared. True, she was smiling, but she was really saying _I'm going to KILL you_. Then, she turned her head back to Diego, and said with a weak chuckle. "Surprise."


	4. The Baby Shower and Voicing Concerns

A/N: Hello, again!

This chapter is about the baby shower, which was sort-of inspired by the baby shower in Lady and The Tramp. The girls were all giving each other gifts and cooing over the new baby, while the guys were teasing the father and smoking. That's not necessarily what's going to happen, but that's why I said **sort-of**.

Also, there is super-fluffyness in this chapter near the end, but it's so sweet that you should read it anyway.

* * *

Ellie, to make up for the mistake she had made, threw a baby shower for Adrian, almost immediately, inviting every young female and every mother or expecting mother in the Glade. Adrian thought it nice that Ellie would go to all that trouble, but she couldn't help feeling that there were too many guests. The only exceptions to this thought were her sister Hazel, who had been delighted to help Ellie with the preparations, and her own mother, Lydia, who, at the news that she soon was to be a grandmother, teared up every five seconds.

"Mother, it's alright." Adrian comforted as Lydia started up the waterworks again. "I'm not in any pain."

"I'm sorry, dear." Lydia sniffled and apologized for the fortieth time in a row. "It's just...I haven't seen my baby in ten years, and the next thing I know, she's married and pregnant!"

"It'll be okay, Ma'm." Ellie echoed, then, not wanting to alarm any of the other guests, she called out. "Alright, let's find out what the next present is!"

Adrian sighed, looking behind her at the piles of other gifts from complete strangers. She felt for a second she should have appreciated them more, but really, when was she going to use a pile of fresh birdseed or a bonnet made out of leaves?

She looked back at the others, who were all jumping around yelling "Mine next, mine next!" or "How about mine, I've been waiting a while!" The babble was thankfully interrupted by Hazel, who wasn't the biggest, but had the loudest voice.

"Uh, uh, I'm the future Aunt here, I'm gonna have my turn!" she yelled gruffly, then smiled at Adrian and handed her a bowl made out of mud. It was slightly cracked, but fresh mud had been used to patch it. "Here." she said simply, as Adrian looked it over.

"This...was Mom's-Annabeth's." Adrian corrected, glancing sideways at her own mother. "How did you ever-"

"Rescued it from the fire. Didn't know what to do with it afterwards, so I figured you'd need it."

"Hazel, I can't take this. You're her daughter, you should-" Adrian objected, tears coming to her own eyes.

"No. You were her daughter as much as any of us. I think she'd want you to have it."

Hazel was about to hug her sister, but at the sight of everyone else's tears, she cleared her throat and toughened up. "Ladies, calm down! Don't start a rainshower already! This is a happy, day remember? Baby on the way! Now, come on and let's see the next present." she ordered. Adrian smiled.

Jostling her way through the now-silent crowd, Peaches carried her present in her trunk. "Here, Auntie Adrian." she said, handing it to her as Adrian put the bowl at her feet. It was a small mobile, with three figures on it, which Adrian couldn't make out.

"Oh. Um...thanks." she replied anyways. Peaches, to her relief, started to point them out.

"See, there's Uncle Dey-go, you, and the little baby. Daddy made one like that for me when I was born." She smiled, and Adrian smiled back, remembering how good the kid's speech was getting.

"Mommy, what about your present?" Peaches asked Ellie. Ellie pulled out some oval-shaped things made of mud, which had something inside them, and were marked with shaped.

"They'll keep in winter." Ellie pointed out.

"Well, that's nice, but what are they?"

"Well, normally every mother gets cravings at least once for four different foods; peaches, tree sap, honey, and mangoes." Ellie answered. "I thought ahead and found some earlier."

"That'll sure help." Adrian said, with no trace of sarcasm. "But what about these other three?"

"I asked Hazel what beavers usually crave during those times. She mentioned all three of the others, as well as broken pine twigs, ceder branches, and oak bark." Ellie shrugged, not understanding beaver habits herself. "So, just in case-"

"You're the best, guys. Thank you." Adrian coughed as the baby gave another kick. "And the little one thanks you, too."

"Aww." all the others cooed. "

"Whatcha gonna call it?" Peaches asked. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"I don't know yet." she confessed. "I'll have to wait until it comes in the spring."

Hazel shook her head reminiscently. "To think you were so against having a little Fuzzhead Jr. way back when." she teased. "That's not what you're going to call him, right?"

"Decidedly not." Adrian agreed. "I'll have to discuss the name options with Diego...if he wants to." she mumbled.

"Fuzzhead Sr. not take the news too well?"

"He passed out." Peaches replied, then at her mother's reproachful glance, she shrugged and added "Well, he **did**."

"I admit, he was a little...shocked, when I told him." Adrian cleared up, trying to convince herself. After all, he had mentioned the night before he didn't want a cub so soon. "But I really think, after he's accepted the idea, he'll be as happy about it as I am."

As the girls all started arguing again about whose turn it was for presents, Adrian thought mournfully to herself _But what if he isn't?_

* * *

Diego paced around the unlit campfire, lost in thought and ashamed of himself. Really, who passed out after hearing that they would be a father? Manny didn't, and he sure as heck shouldn't have.

"All right! Way to go, Romeo!" Sid teased, clapping him on the back. "Knew you had it in you!" Crash and Eddie wooped mockingly.

"Knock it off, guys." Manny threatened. He, being the only other father in the herd, was symphatetic with Diego. "Or you'll be the baby's first chewtoys." He looked towards Diego, who still hadn't lifted his head up. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" he denied.

"Well, you haven't said anything-"

"There's nothing to say." he cut off. "She's having a baby. I'll be a parent. That's all there is."

The taunts died down, as they all stared in shock.

"You are, happy, though, aren't you?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah. I guess. I mean, this is a big thing." he responded.

"So...why aren't you happy?" Manny questioned.

He sighed, not saying anything.

"Look, having a kid isn't going to ruin your life. It'll change things, of course, but for the better." Manny reasurred. "Believe me, once you see the little guy's face, you'll realize that your life wasn't complete without it. I felt like that when I saw Peaches for the first time."

"Yeah, babies are cool, man." Crash joined in. "Sure, they cry a lot, and need a lot of attention, but they're cool."

"Watchin' 'em grow and stuff. It's awesome." Eddie echoed.

"It might be for you, but...I'm just worried." he gave up, voicing his trouble at last.

"About what?" Manny queried.

"Well...what if I'm not ready? I mean, what if I make a mistake and-"

"No parent is perfect." Manny shrugged. "Look, if it's bothering you that much, maybe you should tell Adrian."

They heard Adrian laughing from farther away, along with the others at the baby shower. Her laugh stood out above the others, as sweet as honey and as bright as the sunshine.

"But, she's so happy. I don't want to ruin that for her."

"She's your wife, right?" Sid argued rhetorically. "You can tell her anything, right? Go ahead, we'll give you two some space."

* * *

When the sun had finally gone down, Adrian skipped happily over to the den, where Diego sat, still pondering.

"Hey, Daddy." she greeted merrily. Almost too merrily. "You feeling better now?"

"Oh, hi." he mumbled.

She rolled her eyes playfully. "You're supposed to say 'Hi, **Mommy**'. You know, so the baby can hear." She laughed almost scarily, then asked, with a wide smile still on her face. "Are they gone?"

"Who?"

"The baby shower girls. They've been tailing me all day. Are they gone?"

He looked over his shoulder. "Uh, yeah."

"Good." The smile dropped off her face. "Ugh, that was a **nightmare**. Being oggled by a bunch of strangers I've never met! I know Ellie meant well, but jeez! You have to act as happy and bubbly about babies as they are. Not that I'm not excited..." she pointed out. "But they're so judgemental! If you don't say a thing, they stare at you like vultures!"

"Wish I had your problem." Diego joked.

"Oh. Did the guys give you a rough time?" she questioned, almost forgetting about his troubles.

"Well, not Manny, but everyone else."

"Figures. Boys will be boys." She rolled her eyes. "I'm just glad we finally got a moment alone. Well, you, me, and the little one, anyway. I suppose in that case, we'll **never** have a moment alone, ha, ha, ha-"

"Honey, can I talk to you?"

She shut up once she realized how serious he sounded. "Sure. What's wrong?"

"I know I said before that having a baby this early wasn't a good thing, but-"

"You've changed your mind?" she assumed happily. "Oh, sweetheart, that's wonderful! I knew you'd warm up to the idea sooner or later." She kissed his cheek and lay her head on his shoulder.

"It's not that, it's just-" he corrected, feeling more awkward and light-headed from the kiss. "-I only said that because...I'm nervous about-"

"About what?" she demanded, sitting up straight. "You don't want the baby?"

"No. It's just...what is I'm not a good father?" he blurted out. She stared at him with sad eyes.

"Oh, Diego, don't say that. You'll make a wonderful father. What gave you an idea like that?"

"Well, you grew up around love and caring. Your mother, the beavers. I know you'll be the best mother in the world. But...I never got that. I was raised in a Pack that taught me that caring was for the weak, and that the strong fought to the death. My father never cared about me, and if he did, he only pretended to so I could obey him. What kind of atmosphere is that for a child?" he reasoned.

"But you're different." she consoled. "You saw past all that. Weren't you willing to give your life to protect that human baby? Protect the herd? I know better than anybody how kind and sweet and caring you really are. And just because you didn't experience that as a cub doesn't make you any less of a good person. And you are a good person, that's why I love you." She blinked back tears. "And I grew up in a Pack for ten years, too. My father hated me, and most everyone in the Pack thought I was some scrawny, scared little nobody who couldn't shut her yap and couldn't fend for herself. I had no friends, and the only one in the world who would have risked their life for me was my mother.

"The way the beavers treated me was different. All of them, once they had seen I was nothing more than a scared, abandoned, helpless cub-"

"You were never helpless." Diego argued loyally.

"Well, I certainly felt like it then." she continued, though smiling at his defense. "I'll never forget their kindness; they welcomed me into their home, they welcomed me into their lives. And most of all, they welcomed me into their hearts, and treated me as if I had always been part of their family. My mother and them taught me about caring and love, and if it wasn't for them I would have probably grown up to be like your Packmates.

"The herd helped you become who you are, and so my mother and the beavers helped me. It takes a loving hand to mold a loving heart." she finished, drying her tears. "So, with two kind, caring people as parents, our baby is sure to get those qualities."

He had had the most amount of respect and love one could have for his wife, but now at these words it tripled, and he realized how stupid he had been. She was a beautiful, kind, tough and yet sweet woman who always knew the right thing to say. And if he could love his new child as much as he loved her (which he would), there would be no problems at all.

"You're the best." he thanked. "What would I do without you?"

As the full moon rose higher in the sky, the two settled down to try and sleep. Adrian had tired quickly, and was breathing softly, snuggling into his shoulder instinctively. He watched as the moon's ray made her soft fur shine, and smiled. His life was perfect with her by his side, and now, with a child of their own, it was going to get even better.


	5. The Name Game, and More to Come

A/N: Two updates in two days?

I know, I'm too much. I just hope I can get a few more reviews, and, please, make them as detailed as you like!

* * *

The weeks seemed to fly by. More bare trees sprung up every day as a reminder; winter was coming. There wasn't any snow yet, but it rained nearly every other day, so that weather prediction wasn't far off.

Adrian used those weeks to get to know her baby better. Well, the developing baby, anyway. And it was a very odd little thing. Sometimes, whenever something was going on it didn't like, it would get painful kicks from her left side. Other times, the baby wouldn't mind anything at all, only kicking about once a week. But when it was in those moods, it kicked on the right side.

"Is it strange that I'm keeping track of this at all?" she asked Ellie one day, who shrugged and answered "Helps to know everything, I guess."

She had a million questions on her mind as well. And a few of those...well, all of those...were well worth asking.

* * *

"Diego?"

"Hm?" he mumbled.

It was a lazy afternoon. Adrian had finished a whole mango, and was more curious than ever about her own question. The baby had been kicking an awful lot, so she decided to rest by the river and relax.

"What do you think we should name it?"

"Name what?" he asked, feigning ignorance. He hadn't really given a name much thought.

"You know what. Do you have any ideas?"

"Diego Jr.?" he suggested. She shook her head.

"I know I've mentioned that one before, but...it seems nice for the baby to have its own name, rather than borrowing ours." Not wanting to sound mean, she joked "Besides, that wouldn't work if it was a girl, would it?"

"I guess not." he chuckled. "What do you have in mind?"

"I'm not sure. I'm hoping it'll just come to me. I don't even know what gender it'll be." She leaned forward, looking at the pebbles at the bottom of the river.

"How often is it kicking?"

"Oh, nearly every day this week."

"It's a girl."

She narrowed her eyes. "Might be, or it could be a very picky boy. Let's not play the gender card, okay? Come up with some other names."

"Jake?"

"No." she dismissed.

"Lucy?"

"Uh-uh."

"Mike?"

"Nope."

"Jenny?"

"And no." she rejected again.

"Ignatius." he snickered. She picked up her head and raised an eyebrow. "Okay, now you're just messing with me."

"All right, I'll go back to the **boring** names." he teased, splashing some water at her and making her laugh. "Kelly?"

"Too many L's."

"Camron?"

"No, not the right feel."

"Mary?"

"It's nice, but **everyone** uses that name. Although...M is a good letter for a girl name." she thought aloud. "Maybe, I don't know. I've got the feeling we should wait until it's born."

"Why?" Diego questioned. "It sounds kind of last-minute."

"True. But it worked with my mother."

"How so?"

"Well, before I was born, she planned some names out already. She'd decided I would be called Kirzath if I were a boy, after Father's father, and Jlantash if I were a girl, after Father's mother." she started.

"His side of the family didn't have a gift for naming things, did they?" Diego asked, pondering the thought of almost being married to someone named Jlantash.

"Not by a long shot. Anyway, after I was born, she said that she saw my face for the first time, and she knew I wasn't Jlantash material. But, she didn't know what to call me. And then, she said about a minute later, I'd crawled away to look up at the stars. And then she said it hit her; I was Adrian."

"And thank goodness for that." he sighed. "So, you want to wait?"

"It seems like a better idea the more I talk about it. Unless you want a little Kirzath or Jlantash running around-"

"No, no, no! Waiting is fine." he disagreed quickly. "Believe me, it's okay."

"Good." Suddenly, there were snapping branches, and a figure ran towards them. It was a hurried Hazel.

"Hey, what's going on?" Adrian asked, getting up.

"Well, you remember how...I was at the baby shower, and I said that I hoped Phineas and I would have a kid, too, just so I could get all the free stuff?"

"Yeah, but you were joking." Adrian reminded.

"About the free stuff. But having a baby didn't sound like a bad idea. So..." She held up her hands, finished.

"So?" Adrian didn't get her cut-off speech, at first. "Oh, Hazel, really?"

"By winter!" Adrian jumped up and the two were jumping and laughing before they knew it.

"Wait, winter?" Diego interrupted. "But-

"Oh, of course you wouldn't know." Adrian tore herself away from an excited Hazel. "Beavers have about three months before their babies are born. That's about half the time as I have."

"Oh. Well, congrats. What were you thinking of calling it?" Diego asked her.

"Well, I wanted to carry on the H tradition, so if it's a girl I'll name it Hepzibah..." Hazel said excitedly. "And I'm not sure about a boy name, but Phineas can help me with that." She put a hand to her stomach "Whew, tyke's hungry already. See you later!"

As she walked back into the woods, Adrian muttered "Hepzibah? Jeez."

Diego shook his head, that didn't seem like a contender for the baby, either. "Should I scratch that name off our list?"

"**Please**." Adrian shuddered. "It's an old name and all, but it's **not** for me."


	6. Hazel, Phineas, and Gil

A/N: Hi, everyone (again)

In case you're thinking 'wow, another chapter **already**?', I'm trying to be quick with the updates for this story, as opposed to my updates on The Odd One Out (I expected it to take less than two months to write, and it took me nearly a year!) So, as always, read and I hope you like it!

* * *

As even more weeks, and then months went by, winter fell upon the Glade. A fresh chill added to the already cold air, with snow falling everywhere. Animals were hurrying to get as much food as they could, so even the ever-abundant blueberry bushes were bare. And the lake and rivers had frozen, so fresh water was out of the picture.

Thanks to Ellie's food-filled baby shower present, which, as mentioned before, was preservable, Adrian would have had enough food to crush her cravings for fresh mangoes and oak bark all through winter. But not being the kind to hoard food when others had none, she gave most of it to the herd and her sisters, ignoring the cravings and eating enough to sustain the baby.

One wintery day, when the flakes had finally stopped falling, and the snow came up to Adrian's ankles, she was woken up abruptly by a happy Peaches jumping and yelling in front of her and Diego "Wake up, wake up! It's time for cake!"

"Cake?" Adrian asked, then, getting out of her drowsy state, remembered it was a very important day. "Oh, right, your birthday. How could I forget? We're getting up, don't worry." This assured Peaches enough, and she waddled through the snow back to her parents.

Adrian elbowed Diego awake. "Honey, wake up."

"Hm?" he groaned, not opening his eyes.

"Peaches turns two today. They want us up early." She straightened up, ever-mindful of her baby bump. "Come on."

"All right. I'd better get some breakfast in, though." He started to walk out of the cave, but she followed behind.

"What? You'll miss the party. They made a cake out of honey and mangoes and everything!"

"You know I can't eat that stuff. I'll just go out the eastern exit and get a rabbit, it won't take too long." he shrugged. "I might even find some extra branches or something for you along the way-"

"All right." she gave in. "But it's on your head if Manny and Ellie find you missed the party, you hear?"

"Just cover for me a minute, dear, okay? I'll be right back." He kissed her forehead and ran off into the woods. She sighed, shaking her head.

"The things I do for that lug." she grumbled, with a smile, and turned her head to her stomach. "And don't think **you** can bribe me like that." she half-lectured the baby.

* * *

The celebration went on as planned, while Adrian saying that Diego had 'just gone off for a walk, won't be too long' did the trick. The 'cake' was a meshed-together hub of mangoes and berries at the bottom, honey used as icing on the top, and a few cut-up peaches decorating the sides. Everyone was thrilled to dig in.

"I think the kid has a liking for honey." Adrian said aside to Ellie, who had finished her third slice.

"I don't blame it. Oh, and just asking..." she whispered out of earshot to the others. "Have you and Diego thought about its 'eating habits' once its out?"

"No worries." Adrian answered comfortably. "We're going to give it a mix of plants, fruit, bark...and yes, meat. Just because I'm a vegetarian doesn't mean he or she should be forced to. But we'll teach it early to control meat-eating habits. It won't be any trouble around here."

"Good. I mean, I wasn't worried, but having it hunt around here would sort of distance you from everyone else." Ellie pointed out.

"It won't hunt here. Diego can get it some extra meat from where he hunts, and when he or she is old enough, he'll teach it to hunt for itself. With only two months left, we're making sure we plan everything about the little one's future." she reasurred.

The calm happiness of the party was interrupted as a running Hilary came running into the midst of the celebration, with four-month-old Abigail tottering behind her.

"Excuse me, hello." Hilary gasped out, trying to be polite amidst her panic. "Anyone know where I can find...oh, there you are!" She hurried over to Adrian.

"Hilary, what's going on?" she asked.

"Missus Hazel baby comin'." Abigail replied. "She want you there wickety-spwit."

"Um, yes, what she said." Hilary nodded. "You'd better follow me."

"We're coming, too!" Peaches shouted. "I wanna see the baby."

* * *

There were muffled cries coming from Hazel and Phineas's dam. Helen, the oldest of the Beaver sisters besides Hazel, and Lydia, who had somehow managed to fit inside, were helping her give birth. Adrian, the herd, and Phineas waited outside, Phineas chewing up a log to relieve his tension.

"She'll be okay, Phineas. Hazel's a tough girl, she'll get through it all right." Ellie comforted.

"I know. That's why I love her. But...still. I never grown up around other kids, I was always travellin'. I seen Hazel's younger sisters, but that's about it. I don't know how to handle kids." he rambled anxiously.

"Well, Hazel can always help you with-Diego!" Adrian stopped mid-sentence, as Diego ran towards them. "Where have you **been**?"

"I told you, just went out hunting. But I came back, and everyone was talking about a baby coming-" he said worriedly. "I was worried-"

"Oh, come on, tiger. You know I'm not due for another two months." She smiled. "How'd you know to come here?"

"Well, when I came back everyone was gone. Where else would you all be?"

As Hazel's cries died down, another smaller one started. Helen came out, tired and panting. "She's...you can come in now. Well, those of you who can fit." she told them all. Adrian patted Helen on the head, and then, following Phineas, she squeezed into the dam. She heard Helen say to everyone else. "The rest of you better look in the windows."

Hazel and Phineas's dam, though made of the same materials as any dam, was different. It had a quiet, homely feel to it, reminding her of the old dam she lived in with the beavers at the forest, which had been burned down long ago. But this was smaller, and had nothing more in it than a long bed made of twigs, and a smaller one for guests (or, in this case, the baby)

Hazel lay on the longer bed, resting her head and sweating. But she gave them all a weak smile, to show she was okay.

"You feelin' okay?" Phineas asked, and the others made room so he could stand by her side.

"Am I **feeling** okay?" she repeated sassily. "I-just-gave-birth!" But as they expected the worst, she smiled again and said quietly "I think so. You want to see him?" She held out her arms, and Helen, from outside, started to cry.

If the baby's eyes had not been open, they would hardly be able to tell he was there. His fur was the exact shade as Hazel's, his little nose was dark brown, and his tail was hardly bigger than Hazel's paw. But his eyes were sky blue, like his grandfather Amos's. Most of the beaver sisters had those eyes as well, except for Hazel and Harriet.

"He's perfect. Our little boy." Phineas mused, losing his country slur for almost a minute.

"He is. Did you name him already?" Adrian asked.

"I sure did." Hazel started to cry now, taking over from the baby, who stared at them all with wonder. "Gilbert Phineas. My little Gil."

"**Gilbert**?" Eddie whispered from outside, but a slap in the back of the head from Ellie hushed him up.

"It's perfect." Lydia agreed. Gil gave a tired hiccup, then surpirsed at the involuntary sound coming out of his mouth, started to cry.

"Ssh." Hazel shushed, holding him closer. "Life's too good to be crying, boy. Ssh."

"The rest of the family will be coming over to see him soon." Helen sniffled. "No offense, but you'd all better get going, or they won't be able to fit inside."

"No problem. We'll come visit again later." Ellie smiled, then took Peaches's trunk in hers. "Come on, honey."

"Okay." the little girl said simply. "Hey, he's got the same birthday as me, now. Can we have two cakes?"

The herd laughed, and Ellie replied "Maybe next year, sweetie." They all started to head out, even Lydia. Adrian went out the exit, and looked at the new family from outside. Phineas was holding Hazel's hand, and she was staring down at the baby, who had started to yawn and go to sleep.

"Adrian?" Diego questioned.

"Diego?" she asked back, still watching. "I hope it'll be like that after our child is born."

"It will be. And better. Besides, it'll have a new friend to play with now." Diego smiled, watching as well. Hazel snuggled Gil closer to her. "Welcome to the world, little guy." Adrian said to him, although the baby couldn't hear it in his sleep.


	7. The End

A/N: Okay, sorry to everyone that I kept waiting, but I finally finished the story! So read on, and I'll get back to you later.

* * *

Thirteen hours. Thirteen hours since her water broke. Thirteen hours of Adrian's hard labor, assisted by Ellie (and Peaches brought the water). Thirteen hours, the rest of the herd had waited.

For Diego, it felt like an eternity. An eternity of pacing, stress, and fear. Especially fear. It was too soon, the cub was supposed to be born three weeks from now. What if it wasn't fully developed? What if it was sickly, or frail, or had something wrong with it?

He'd love it anyway, of course. But he wanted a good life for the child, a healthy happy life. Whether it was an energetic son who would always want to run and play, even when Dad was tired out, or a smilinglittle girl who never ceased to ask him questions or mischieviously race him into mud pits, just like Adrian.

Adrian. He was worried about her, too. He knew she was strong, more stronger and braver than anyone he'd ever known. But, all the same, he worried, even thought she hadn't screamed but twice during the whole thirteen hours. Sure, he wasn't a female, but he knew giving birth was more painful than it looked. An image flew to his mind of a worried and pained Ellie, who breathed and held back screams all through her labor, until finally he heard little Peaches cry for the first time...

"Diego."

He snapped out of his thoughts as Ellie came out from behind the den, wiping sweat off her forehead. He coudl still hear Peaches cry...no, he realized, it was for real. That was his new son or daughter crying.

"Is she-are they-" he stumbled to ask.

"Both fine. And Adrian is, too." Ellie comforted, before putting her trunk to her mouth. "Sorry! I shouldn't have given it away." she apologized.

"Both? As in...twins?" Diego confirmed. He was happy, but twins would be a lot of work. "Way to go, Tiger." Sid congradulated, seeming to read his mind.

"You can go see them now." Peaches smiled, liking her role as the little nurse. "I did. They're cute."

Diego looked towards the back of the den, excited and curious to see what lay inside, but he still didn't move.

"Go on." Manny encouraged.

Taking a breath, Diego started walking towards the mouth of the cave cautiously. At first, he only saw Adrian, lying down on her stomach and looking at the stars, like she would any regular day. But then, bits of fur by her stomach started squirming, and he knew she wasn't alone. The cubs had her exact shade of fur.

"Hey." he whispered, walking closer.

She averted her eyes and smiled at him. She looked tired and pale, but still beautiful. Her fur shone nearly silver in the moonlight. "Hey." When he came close enough, she bent to kiss his cheek. "I guess we're finally parents now, aren't we?"

"They look like you, you know. Do they have your eyes?" Diego asked.

"I don't know. They haven't opened them yet." She looked down at them. "They're awful hungry, though. It's an ordeal, being born. Shoved out into a world you have no idea about. Breathing for the first time. But they'll learn."

Diego stared at her lip, which he noticed only now, had bright red marks on it. "Honey, what are those?"

"Hm? Oh. Well, I'd been biting them during labor. Ellie said I shouldn't, but...I didn't want to frighten you. You're under a lot of stress already, you don't need me screaming in you face." she replied. "And I should have kept it in before."

He shook his head, even while giving birth, she still thought of him. "Don't talk like that, you were brave. Even if you screamed a million times, I'd still love you." He kissed her forehead, and one of the cubs started mewing.

"Diego, the girl. She's opening her eyes, look." Adrian said excitedly. He turned his head to look.

The cub nearest to him had lifted her head up and opened her eyes. They were out of focus for a while, before coming to rest on Adrian and Diego. The cub's eyes were blue; a light, deep ocean blue. But not blue like Lydia's, these had a spark of intellect in them, as if she already knew everything in the world; she was just waiting to look upon it. She reacted to nothing, only looking up at her parents.

"Hi." Adrian greeted, tears flooding her eyes. "Hi, little one. Do you know me?"

Her eyebrows formed a puzzled look. She recognized her mother's voice, but there was still something she wanted to ask; Who is **that **guy?

"This is your daddy." Adrian answered her, gesturing to Diego. "He's the sweetest, best guy in the entire world. You're lucky, you know, to have him. We both are. Say hello."

Diego didn't know whether she had issued this gentle command to him or the cub, but he said "Hey." all the same. And for good measure, he added. "You look just like your Mom, you know that? Good thing too; there's no better-looking woman anywhere else."

She kissed his cheek again, and the cub, seeing enough of the love-fest, turned away to explore the world. She flicked at a growing blade of grass, and yowled, surprised when a bud of dew splashed onto her nose. They both laughed softly, and Adrian observed smoothly "She didn't expect that; it caught her off guard. But she'll learn soon enough that the world is full of unexpected things."

The cub must have sensed the teasing note in her mother's voice, for she scowled, and went up to the grass to flick it some more. Water squirted her, but this time she did not complain. In fact, she started to giggle after a while.

"She likes the water, just like you do." Diego grinned, proud of his little girl. Then, Adrian gasped.

"What?" he questioned.

"That's what we'll call her."

"What, you want to call her Water?"

"No. My mother said there was an ancient word for water. She said it was called...Marina." Adrian's voice slowed to a whisper, like it usually did when she was thinking hard.

_Marina_. Diego was surprised how much it seemed to fit. "It's perfect." he agreed. He heard footsteps as the herd came down to meet them.

"Okay, you've had your alone time, now let **us**see." Sid chuckled, looking at Marina, who was trying to reach the leaves in the trees. "Aww." he cooed, then got an idea. "Hey, can I babysit?"

"No." everyone said unanimously. Ellie scooped up Marina in her trunk. "Hasn't the other one opened his eyes?"

"Not yet. I think he's asleep."

"Well, he's got the right idea." Crash yawned, stretching out. "I'm beat."

The others all agreed, and one by one, they bade the new parents goodnight and went to bed. "I can stay up if you guys need me to help." she offered. "It's okay, you've done more than enough already. Thank you." Adrian shook her head, and held a drowsy Marina closer to her. Ellie started to got hen, but stopped, saying "Oh, I guess the little guy woke up."

The other little cub had sat up, yawning. There was a lot of fur falling in his eyes, and Adrian brushed it away. Two small, energetic blue eyes were staring back at her. "Oh, look, he has your smile, Diego." Adrian commented, as the boy gave a small sarcastic smirk that made the three of them laugh. But, something was wrong...

"What's with his eye?" Diego asked, lookign closer at him. His left eye had some weird glaze over it, making the color a bit duller. But it wasn't horrendously noticeable. He blinked at his father, and spit up, gooing.

"I don't know. It's sort of...Ellie, what do you think?"

Ellie walked over slowly. "Oh, I've seen that before. One of Crash and Eddie's friends had that. It just sort of clouds the eye up. He won't be able to see as good out of it."

Adrian was getting more worried. "Was-did he catch something? Is he sick?"

"No, it just happens sometimes, nobody knows why. Don't worry, it's not dangerous at all." Ellie reassured. "It's okay, you guys. I'll see you in the morning." And with that, she left. Adrian looked back at the baby, who had raised an eyebrow, seeming to ask _What's wrong with me, Mommy?_

"Nothing." She answered his unasked question. "Nothing's wrong with him, then. He's my little perfect munchkin." She rubbed his head, and he yawned. "He's got a little maniac in his eyes, though. We're going to need a careful watch on him, Diego." She yawned, and muttered "All this yawning is making me tired, too-"

Laying her head down, with Marina snuggled close to her, she closed her eyes and tried to sleep. Diego was still taking this all in. Sure, his son wouldn't ever be normal, but what was normal, really? Adrian was right, he was a perfect little ball of fluff. The kind of son you could play tag with, or teach to fish.

The baby, not tired yet, sat up looking at his dad. As if to say _Let's play, Daddy._

_Diego crouched to his level, putting his paws to his eyes, and said "Where's the baby?"_

He felt the boy pull the paws away, and gurgled "Uck dah."

"There he is!"

The boy gurgle again, and with a burst of energy, pounced onto his shoulder and tug on his ear.

"You're gonna tear it off, kid." Diego laughed. The boy only persisted, adding an attempted "Grr." to the mix.

"Adrian was right, you're a maniac." he chuckled, lifting him off with his paw, and holding him so he wouldn't jump up again. "I still don't know what to call you, though."

The boy smirked at him, saying _Don't worry, Dad, you'll figure out something_. Then, he closed his eyes, tuckered out. Diego placed him carefully by his sister.

_What a day it's been,_ he said to himself. I'm a dad, and I've got two little balls of fur to look after now. As he was about to settle down with these happy and promising thoughts, he saw something fall from the sky and hit the grass.

"What the-" He got up, and looked up at the sky. Nothing. How strange-

Looking down at the thing that had dropped, he saw it was an odd leaf, very light green and tropical. Last times he'd seen leaves like that was...about two years ago, or something like that, when he and the herd went down into the world of the Dinosaurs.

"Buck." he said, remembering the insane weasel fondly. He and his new energy-filled son would get along quite well. Then, it occured to him...

Why not?

He took the palm leaf, and went back to the den. "It's a little big, but it'll fit. We'll use it to tie back that hair of yours." he mumbled to the sleeping cub, tying it carefully so it pulled back his hair. "Am I going to have some things to say to your mom tommorow."

He rumpled the kid's head, and he barely stirred. "Good night...Buck." He smirked before getting to sleep himself. There would be a lot of new adventures ahead, and he'd take them all on...with his wife and kids beside him.

* * *

A/N: The END! God, it was really long, wasn't it?

Not really, but I made it too long, by being such a prick about this chapter. Once again, I am sorry!

I've got a new story in the works, though. No, it is not a sequel to this, but there will be one, don't worry. It's a new story, and when I have it published, you can click on the sotry page in my profile if you want to read it.

Aww, aren't the cubs cute? I thought so, I made them. Yes, there will be more of them mentioned in later stories, NO, I will not do a sneak preview. You'll just have to read the sequel when it comes out!

Don't expect it right away though, I've still got a lot of work to do for school and am mostly focusing on other stories, too. I need time to plan.

So, okay, I'm done talking now. Remember to read my other stories when they come out, please? It would be greatly appreciated! Bye!


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